Racing … in cars!

I just returned from another fun weekend of racing. No, not bicycle racing, but car racing! I have been racing cars since 2011 with an organization called LeMons. Before you start thinking about an elitist style of racing in some fancy car, you need to understand what LeMons is all about. To quote the www.24HoursOfLeMons.com website, LeMons is “Endurance racing for $500 cars. It’s where Pintos and Maseratis battle to lap a Le Car. It’s where first-timers dice with Nomex-soiling pros.” Yes, it is what I affectionately refer to as “Junker car racing.” The cars I have raced have ranged from a 1973 SAAB Sonnet, to a 1997 Mazda Miata. From really, really slow, to fairly darned fast.

This past weekend, I had the privilege to race on a team of 6 women racers at Sonoma Raceway in Sonoma, Ca. For those of you familiar with this track, you will understand the fun challenges that this track presents. For those of you unfamiliar with the track, it is a 12 turn 2 ½ mile course with elevation changes of around 160 feet. Our team raced in a 1997 Mazda Miata, which put us in the “fastest” A class of racing. Our team, along with another 170 vehicles were participating to see how fast we can turn a lap, who we can pass & what place we get by the end of day 2. The event runs about 14 hours during the daylight of Saturday and Sunday. To add to all the fun, it was a damp, wet and slippery day on Sunday as the mist and light rain blanketed the track most of the day.

The thrill of speed and adrenaline is just in my blood. Besides the fun of testing my limits on the track, I find that the seat time behind to wheel helps with my bicycle racing, and my bicycle racing helps with my car racing. It is virtually the same sport, but with more speed and better protection in the car. I also had the experience of not being the fastest one on the team. It was a humbling, as I am usually the only woman on the team and used to being “special.” It was great to be around the other fast ladies and seeing what and how they do what they do, and looking for ways to improve myself. It was also nice to see how great we all got along and how much fun we had sitting in the cheering out loud as we see our little red Miata zoom around the hairpin turn 11 and pass another competitor. Talk about excitement.

In trying to balance motherhood in all that I do, my youngest son, Daniel (16), came along for the trip. Although I was occupied during the day with the race, it was nice to spend some time during the weekend hanging with him. I can only hope that he sees all that his mom does as an inspiration to go out and live life to the fullest!

With the holiday season in full swing, I will be going in a few directions, but will be taking time to spend with my 3 boys making memories. I wish you the most amazing holiday season & hope that 2015 was a year full of fun!